Mortal Kombat film nets The Raid, Fast & Furious fighter Joe Taslim

Mortal Kombat character Sub Zero combines martial arts proficiency with ice powers. — AFP Relaxnews

Joe Taslim of Indonesian martial arts hit The Raid: Redemption, interstellar Star Trek: Beyond, and action blockbuster Fast & Furious 6 is the first actor signed up for the Mortal Kombat movie adaptation, in which he will play fearless ninja Sub-Zero.

Produced by Aquaman, Furious 7, and The Conjuring helmer James Wan, the Mortal Kombat movie has landed its first cast member in Indonesian actor and action star Joe Taslim, per The Hollywood Reporter.

He'll be playing ice-cold warrior Sub-Zero, a blue-and-black clad masked ninja who has appeared in numerous franchises since fighting game series Mortal Kombat launched in 1992, as well as cameo appearances in NBA Jam and the Mortal Kombat studio's DC superhero fighting game series Injustice.

Taslim broke through internationally as Jaka, the tactical police squad's sergeant in crime tower takedown The Raid: Redemption.

He then moved on to roles in Fast & Furious 6 as vicious mercenary Jah, Star Trek Beyond as Manas, lieutenant to the movie's alien warlord Krall, and reunited with The Raid star Iko Uwais as the hero character in another Indonesian action thriller, The Night Comes for Us.

Wan's Mortal Kombat project has targeted a March 2021 release, with director Simon McQuoid making a feature-length debut after shooting ads for Call Of Duty: WWII, a Star Wars-themed Duracell campaign, PlayStation, Xbox's Halo 3, Nissan, Samsung and Netflix, among others.

He'll be working from a script by writer Greg Russo, whose treatments for upcoming Resident Evil, Death Note 2, and Saints Row adaptations have also been picked up by studios; cinematographer Germain McMicking of True Detective season 3 is likewise on board.

Filming is to take place in and around Adelaide, Australia. – AFP Relaxnews